Given that Australia's anti-China propaganda has been in overdrive these last few days, I thought it would be timely to announce the new project I'll be launching next month... CO-WEST-PRO English Language Education. 1/
There's an urgent need for Western propaganda literacy now, and I'm doing my bit by utilising my skills and qualifications (a Master in #TESOL). Each fortnight I will be publishing #ESL lessons about Western propaganda for free on my site for ESL learners in the global south. 2/
The speed of my output will be quicker if my followers here on Twitter can suggest themes and topics for each ESL lesson. So please message me liberally! There will definitely have to be several lessons dedicated to @ASPI_org!
3/
I'm keen to build relationships with ESL educators in all global south countries, especially in the university sector, so please reach out to me! It is the people of the global south who understand the dangers of Western propaganda more than anyone else.
4/
To finish, I'll state the obvious. Western propaganda is a scourge on the world. It has facilitated division, instability and violence across space and time. For an increasing number of us, the scales are falling from the eyes. It's now time to scale-up our pushback!
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CO-WEST-PRO's new working paper is out today: "The Uyghur Tribunal: People's Justice or Show Trial?"
I've taken a different approach with this paper to my last two. This time I leave it to the readers to answer the title's question. 1/ cowestpro.co/papers
Given CO-WEST-PRO is a one-person show, I need to come up with a new method for publishing more papers per year (3 a year isn't a viable model). So I've decided to trial writing papers that highlight key issues instead of undertaking full & comprehensive analyses.
2/
If CO-WEST-PRO ever has funds to be a fully-fledged consultancy firm that employs a full-time team, then I would like it to go back to full & comprehensive analyses. In the meantime, I hope my third paper gives a Chinese think tank guidance to complete the task I started.
3/
I've had a quick look at Bachelet's report this morning on the forced labour issue. I'm glad she focused on the key document that I did in my 2nd CO-WEST-PRO paper - the Chinese Govt's White Paper (which ASPI, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch did not). 1/
The screenshot below is of Bachelet's summary. This is not the win that ASPI, in their heart-of-hearts, would have hoped for. Bachelet's report ends with questions, not answers. 2/
I agree with Bachelet that more transparency and clarification is required from the Chinese Govt on how the VETCs interlock with 'work or service'. Again, I noted this issue in greater legal detail in my 2nd CO-WEST-PRO paper. 3/
Hi @tomcanetti. I got your question for the hit piece you are likely planing on doing on me for @SBSNews. I'll answer your McCarthyite question here on Twitter to make it harder for you to misrepresent me. 1/
No I don't receive any funding from the Chinese Govt et. al., and I resent the accusatory question. How about ask a real investigative question, like what motivated me to sacrifice months of my life without pay to take on ASPI? 2/
I tell you what motivates me. I don't think that us Australian citizens should be funding an Australian government company that publishes falsehoods in our name that harm extraterritorial human rights. 3/
Due to the amount of attention I’m getting for my legal analysis of ASPI’s “Uyghurs For Sale” report, I thought I would create this thread summarising the main points of my paper…
1. The body of the ASPI report contains no legal definition for forced labour (it's tucked away in an endnote instead). For this reason alone, the ASPI report can be tossed aside as junk research not meeting academic and legal research standards.
2. ASPI arguably misled its readers by substituting a legal definition of forced labour with the International Labour Organisation’s (ILO) indicators of forced labour, as if it is some type of legal checklist. It is not.
Well, folks, I'm back to report on what went down at ASPI. First off, I met ASPI's Executive Director, @BassiJustin. On a personal level, he seems like a nice guy. Meeting him helped humanise him for me. However, we had a strong disagreement about... 1/
...what makes quality research. I wanted to stick to facts, evidence, law and reason, whereas Justin wanted to stick to opinion. His opinion is that these photos are of a Xinjiang concentration camp, not a high school. I was disappointed he wouldn't concede. 2/
I met @AlbertYZhang, who seems nice. I'm grateful that he allowed rationality to kick in and conceded that these photos do not look like a concentration camp to him. Albert was open to communicating with me about any other research integrity issues I find. 3/
Hi @xu_xiuzhong. It's been brought to my attention that you viewed my earlier message to you as a death threat or rape threat, or a show of support of death threats or rape threats. I just want to categorically make clear that that was definitely NOT what my message meant. 1/5
I've never made such threats to anyone, nor would I ever support such threats. You certainly have my sympathy for the shocking sexual harassment you received in 2020, which I think you handled admirably. Your critics should be attacking your work, not your personhood. 2/5
I took your message about hiding as meaning you've been hiding from Australians who've read my CO-WEST-PRO paper, who are upset about the misleading & deceptive claims in your ASPI report, and will be coming to your talks to ask you to explain yourself, i.e. accountability. 3/5